John Garrison, left, and Carol Freund fill out mix-and-match orders and warranty reorders Friday at the OtterBox distribution center in Fort Collins.

OtterBox employee Hai Do reconfigures parts from different orders on Friday in an effort to recycle parts that once would have been scrapped at the OtterBox distribution center in Fort Collins. / V. Richard Haro/The Coloradoan

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Fort Collins-based OtterBox is aggressively defending its name and protective mobile phone cases from Chinese fakes, seeking jail time for Americans who sell counterfeits and repeatedly calling in federal agents to assist.

Company officials say their efforts are aimed at ensuring anyone who thinks they’re buying an OtterBox case gets an authentic OtterBox case. Some OtterBox cases cost nearly $100, but for fans the price is worth it. After all, few things accompany our lives as closely as our phones and, by extension, the cases protecting them.

“It really bothers us that our good name would be tarnished by criminals. It’s not cool,” said Rachael D. Lamkin, the company’s associate general counsel. “This is a company that cares very much about its community.”

The Coloradoan asked its readers for feedback about OtterBox cases to get a sense of the emotional connection the company has worked so hard to build with its customers.

“I have two kids,” Laura Gosnell said simply. “My OtterBox is priceless.”

Other readers praised the company’s focus on customer service and satisfaction, and for making products that perform as advertised.

“I sat my iPhone on the top of my car, stupidly, and drove onto the highway. When I reached speeds of about 65 mph, it flew off, hitting the trunk and then bouncing violently down the road,” said Devin Sanders. “My Otterbox Defender was barely scratched and my iPhone was not damaged in the least. Awesome engineering and completely worth the price paid.”

Last October, OtterBox won a major judgment against nearly a dozen companies caught illegally importing counterfeit cases or cases that were deemed to infringe on OtterBox’s patented designs. In 2012 alone, OtterBox won court judgments and settlements worth almost $11 million.

Lamkin said the company does not disclose what counterfeiters cost it in lost sales. She said most of the fakes are made in China, where patents aren’t honored as scrupulously as they are here.

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“We’re very, very aggressive, and so far quite successful,” she said. “People go to jail. This is not some 21-year-old kid who accidentally bought a pallet of cases from China. These are criminals.”

Patent and trademark expert Jeremy Nelson said most major American companies work hard to protect their inventions and products. He said the system is set up so companies can make back the money they’ve invested in design, testing and production.

“Patents are not cheap,” said Nelson, who works for CSU Ventures, Colorado State University’s technology marketing and patenting arm. “But it’s worth it to a company that’s investing a lot on R&D costs. It’s worth it to protect that investment.”

Lamkin said OtterBox has private investigators working in nearly every state to track down fakes. She said the company has a variety of ways to determine if cases are fake, but she said the company doesn’t like to talk about how it can tell, for fear of giving counterfeiters a leg up.

She said it’s a constant challenge for OtterBox to invent and market new cases and then chase down the fakes that invariably pop up.

But she said it’s worth it to OtterBox and owner Curt Richardson, who takes personally the idea that someone would rip off the work of his staff.

“You get what you pay for,” Lamkin said. “If somebody is trying to sell you an OtterBox for a low price, it’s probably not an OtterBox case.”